Learned so much more than I thought

Prior to my semester abroad, anytime someone mentioned Brazil my mind conjured stereotypical images. Beaches, bikinis, caipirinhas, dancing in the streets. What I wasn't picturing was a world-class city teeming with a wide range of cultural life and international companies and ex-pats from all corners of the globe. But this is what Sao Paulo is like. It's a giant, bustling, highly international city whose limits and skyscrapers stretch far off into the distance, farther than the eye can see. My semester here was incredibly fun, but also challenging. I really enjoyed the flexibility of the classes, which enabled me to travel around the continent as I had hoped. Although I was underwhelmed by the quality of the local university, the real reason I came to Sao Paulo was to learn Portuguese, something that I successfully accomplished thanks to the strength of CET’s Portuguese language program in-country. I made great friends with local Brazilians, especially thanks to my local roommates who were more than willing to help me with Portuguese and show me around the city. I attended cool cultural and international events, such as the Economist’s Brazil Summit, and did my fair share of dancing in the street. I’d go back again in a heartbeat!